Samsung today announced its plans to invest an additional $4 billion into its chip plant in Austin, Texas in an effort to keep up with growing demand for its system chips which are used in an assortment of tablets and smartphones, including the iPhone. Indeed, despite their legal squabbles, Apple remains Samsung’s most important and largest customer.

Samsung’s press release reads in part:

The remodeled fabrication line will mainly produce state-of-the-art mobile SoCs on 300mm wafers at the 28nm process node.

Starting work this month, the project is scheduled to initiate mass production within the second half of 2013. About 2,500 construction workers and equipment vendors will be at the site to retrofit the facility and set up the equipment.

Dr. Woosung Han, president of Samsung Austin Semiconductor said, “We are extremely pleased to extend our presence in Austin and reinforce Samsung’s capacity for highly advanced logic products. The added ability in production will allow our customers to better respond to market needs.”

The Statesman, based out of Austin, fleshes out some more detail, adding that the company “will replace older memory equipment with new manufacturing gear that is better suited to making advanced system chips for smartphones and other mobile devices.”

Samsung also points out that the $4 billion investment marks the largest single foreign investment ever made in Texas. Further, Samsung notes that its total investment in Texas since 1996 checks in at $13 billion